|

Godus to have fresh take on microtransactions, says Molyneux

Peter Molyneux has dropped some hints of the microtransaction strategy in Project Godus, while distancing it from the usual "be patient or pay money" model.

Project Godus will have microtransactions, but creator Peter Molyneux shies away from the term "free-to-play." In a recent interview, he promised its monetization strategy will be something "that hasn't existed before," distancing it from the traditional F2P model.

"There cannot be a term that is less true," he told PocketGamer. "What we need is a new term. And that term is more like 'invest-to- play.' What really are we doing? We are tempting people to invest some of their money into a game."

Molyneux said the "be patient or pay money" model of energy systems in games is bound to push people away. "That's not a delightful mechanic. That's not going to get people to invest their money," he said. "We can't be so crude in making the first thing we teach people in these games how to speed things up by spending gems. That's absolutely insane."

He also called for more subtlety in how the monetization is introduced. Of course, it wouldn't be Molyneux without at least one broad, almost-impossible-to-fulfill promise, so he also said the Godus microtransactions will be as "fresh and as new and as different from anything you've ever seen in any game."

Steve Watts

Editor-In-Chief

Steve Watts' youthful memories are are a blur of pixels, princesses, castles, and Mega Busters. After writing about games as a pastime for years, he got his first shot at a paid gig at 1UP. He's freelanced for several sites since then, and found a friendly home at Shacknews. His editorial duties include news, reviews, features, and lunatic ravings. He lives in the Baltimore-Washington area with his shockingly understanding wife.